


all you need

by LiveLaughLovex



Series: first to fight [19]
Category: The Code (TV 2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Future, Established Relationship, F/M, Post-Season/Series 01
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-30
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:55:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21614926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex
Summary: A little less than a year after their relationship's start, Harper and Abe spend their first Thanksgiving together as a couple, surrounded by the friends that have become more like family.
Relationships: John "Abe" Abraham & Harper Li, John "Abe" Abraham/Harper Li
Series: first to fight [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1471817
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9





	all you need

**Author's Note:**

> They say love is all you need. - Unknown

Harper stared intently at her phone in the passenger seat of Abe’s truck, absentmindedly mouthing words to herself as she looked over the list she’d compiled before they’d left the apartment. Something about it seemed off, as if there were some crucial item she’d forgotten to jot down before dashing out the door in the vain hopes of avoiding the morning rush.

“What exactly are you doing?” Abe asked curiously, glancing over at her for a moment before returning his attention to the road.

“Going over the list,” she explained absentmindedly. “It’s short. Like, suspiciously so. I’m pretty sure I forgot something obvious and also important, but I can’t figure out what it is.”

“Trey and Nona live less than five minutes away from a supermarket,” Abe reminded her, pulling into the store’s parking lot and quickly locating a spot near the entrance. “If you forgot something, we can make a quick trip to the store tomorrow.”

“And make the workers do their job on Thanksgiving?” Harper was appalled by the very idea. “I don’t want to do that to somebody.”

“You do realize they have to work whether you go to their store or not, yes?” her boyfriend questioned amusedly, turning the key in the ignition and effectively silencing the engine. “You having to run in for cornstarch isn’t going to make or break their day.”

“I’m not going to have to run in for cornstarch, because it’s on the list. That is not the important thing I’m forgetting.”

“Or maybe, just maybe, you haven’t forgotten anything and are currently stressing yourself out for no reason,” he offered helpfully, unbuckling his seatbelt and pushing open the door to climb from the cab.

“I’m not taking advice from the guy who forgot to pick up the pumpkin last year,” Harper responded seriously, circling around to the other side of the truck to fall into step beside him. She reached for his hand, intertwining their fingers as they headed for the entrance.

“I don’t know why everyone always brings that up,” Abe complained lightheartedly. “So I forgot one thing last year; what’s the big deal?”

“You were supposed to bring the ingredients for _pumpkin pie_. Most people would argue that pumpkin’s sort of an important ingredient for the pie they _named_ after it.” Harper shook her head. “This is why it’s been decided by the group that I have to come along with you every time you go shopping for ingredients this time of year.”

“I’m your ride everywhere we go this time of year,” Abe pointed out logically, letting go of her hand to grab a cart from the collection right near the front door. “Be kind of pointless for you _not_ to come.”

“That’s not the _point_ , sweetheart,” Harper argued, heaving a long-suffering sigh despite the fond smile she threw his way as they made their way down the baking aisle. “The only reason for you forgetting to buy the one ingredient that makes pumpkin pie… well, that makes pumpkin pie _pumpkin pie_ , was because you were allowed to go unsupervised.”

“Yes, because you’d been in a Humvee accident not three months before,” Abe reminded her, a flash of pain appearing in his gaze at the mention of the incident and then disappearing just as quickly. “I wasn’t going to make you traipse around from store to store when it was thirty-seven degrees outside.”

“I’m sorry, _traipse_?” she repeated amusedly. “Did you, John Abraham, just use the word _traipse_ in a twenty-first century conversation? Forget about the pumpkin fiasco; I’ve got new mocking material.”

“So glad to help you out, love,” Abe replied drily, grabbing the aforementioned box of cornstarch from a nearby shelf and tossing it into the basket. “Was it cranberries?” he inquired a moment later, drawing her attention away from the list once more.

“Was what cranberries?” she questioned confusedly.

“The thing your list was missing,” he clarified. “Nona’s making her own sauce using a recipe that’s been passed down about two hundred years now. Every time someone even mentions buying the canned stuff, she looks at us like we’ve just declared war on all of humanity.”

“Cranberries!” Harper repeated, nodding vigorously. “Thank God you remembered, or else we would’ve had to go with the canned stuff and Nona would’ve been looking at _all_ of us that way.”

“I am occasionally helpful,” Abe replied amusedly, continuing down the aisle and grabbing the items she called out to him off their respective shelves. He glanced over at her once they’d left the baking supplies behind. “Your mother call you back yet?”

She scoffed humorlessly. “Since I told her I was spending the second Thanksgiving in as many years away from home? No, she hasn’t. She might never speak to me again, quite honestly, and with the way I’m feeling right now, I can’t promise I’d be all that broken up about it.”

“Yeah,” Abe countered gently, his gaze all too knowing. “You would be.”

“Yeah,” she agreed defeatedly, glancing away to stare at a display of s’mores ingredients. “I would be.”

“It’s not a bad thing,” Abe assured her softly, his fingers brushing briefly against the back of her hand. “They’re your parents. You’re always going to want them in your life. Believe me, I get it.”

Harper nodded mutely, suddenly reminded of Russell Abraham and the way his family had lost him. “Thank you,” she replied quietly. “For understanding.”

“Always,” he said easily, continuing down the aisle. “Now, what was the verdict you and Nona reached on the powdered sugar? Because I seem to recall…”

Harper listened as he continued on, sharing the secrets of their friend’s homemade whipped cream as they headed for the next aisle with items they needed, and, as she watched the easy way he spoke, the way he glanced over every so often with eyes so full of admiration and fondness it was enough to make her own sting, and realized that, this year more than any other before it, she had a great many things to be thankful for.

-o-

They arrived at the Ferry home promptly at noon the following day, and Nona smiled warmly when she opened the door to welcome them. “Hey, you two. Come on in. Can I get you anything to drink?”

“Hey, No,” Abe replied, kissing her cheek in greeting as he made his way inside. “We’ve heard all about the night you’ve had, so we’ll get our own drinks. You should be relaxing. Go take a nap or something.”

“It’s Thanksgiving,” Nona reminded him needlessly. “There’s too much to be done. And I wouldn’t be able to, anyway. Those kids are like sharks, except instead of detecting blood, they can detect tiredness. The second we go to lay down, either of us, they’re up and wanting something.”

Harper grimaced sympathetically as they entered the living room. “That _does_ explain why Trey fell asleep reading the day’s reports a few weeks back.”

“That’s better than falling asleep in the middle of a grocery store, which is what he did a week after they were born.” Nona shook her head, claiming a seat on the sofa to grab a brief moment of rest. “Took him nearly three hours to get back with a gallon of milk.”

“Eh, seems like an average amount of time to me. There’re just so many options these days, No,” Abe pointed out amusedly, smirking in response to the exasperated look their friend sent his way. “Speaking of Trey, he in with the babies?”

“Always,” Nona replied, heaving a long-suffering sigh despite the fact that more than a hint of fondness glimmered in her gaze. “He’ll be out by the time food’s on the table, though. He hasn’t eaten in about half a day; he’s not missing out on this.”

“Okay. Well, on that note, I’m going to go pop your casserole into the oven,” Abe told Harper, pressing a kiss to her cheek and then heading off in the direction of the home’s kitchen.

“Things getting any better with the twins?” Harper questioned hopefully, knowing from her coworker how hard it’d been these past few days. 

Nona shook her head defeatedly. “Not really. We’re putting them down for a nap, seeing as their sleep schedule’s wrecked already and it isn’t exactly like we’ll be getting any sleep either way.”

“Damn, I really do always choose the worst times to walk in,” Maya commented drily, wandering into the room with Maddie trailing just a few steps behind her. “You’re really selling this whole parenthood thing to the rest of us. I haven’t even gotten to the sleep deprivation phase, and now I’m dreading it.”

“Good,” Nona replied firmly. “You should be scared of it, because Trey’s told me on many occasions that he was able to rest more in a warzone than he did in the weeks after we brought the twins home. I am told they eventually learn what sleep is, though, so there’s always that to look forward to, about seven or eight months in.”  
  
“That’s – not at all comforting, honestly,” Maya replied, pressing a hand against her slightly protruding stomach.

“Hey, you’re not making it any easier for yourself by waiting to find out the gender,” Nona responded knowingly. “You’re a Marine, for God’s sake. Haven’t you had enough surprise in your life? Donovan, too?”

“Yeah, but they’ve always been _bad_ surprises,” Maya offered, her tone suggesting that much should have been obvious. “And this is a _good_ surprise, either way, so… waiting. Just buy green and yellow. It will be fine, I promise.”

“Fair point,” Harper allowed. “By the way, where’d your kid go?”

Maya glanced over her shoulder, her eyes widening as she took in the empty spot where Maddie had been standing, but then turned back to them with a slight shrug. “Not out the front door, which is the only thing to be worried about at this house. I think Ferry started babyproofing when those two pink lines appeared.”

“You’re not wrong,” Nona murmured under her breath, rolling her eyes fondly.

Maya nodded. “Yeah, and she’s been bugging Donovan for a dog, so chances are she’s trying to sell him on the benefits. You know she had her babysitter help her out with a PowerPoint? I honestly thought her generation was about a decade too young to even know that was a thing that existed.”

“Well, that makes two of us.” Harper glanced away from her friend when Abe entered the room. “Did you know the new generation understands PowerPoint?”

Abe arched a brow, but otherwise didn’t outwardly question the sudden change in subject, instead moving to claim the seat next to her and then simply replying to the question posed to him as if it were completely logical. “Well, that’s great, because I’ve seen some of the higher-ups try to figure it out before, and…” He shook his head. “We need the newer generation, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Don’t insult your commanding officers; that could be considered treason,” Harper warned playfully.

“Yeah, and don’t talk about the new generation and the Marine Corps in the same sentence.” It seemed Maya’s words were more of a direct order than anything else. Her hand was pressed to her abdomen once more. “I’ve got more than a decade before either kid can choose to follow in my footsteps or their dad’s.” She shuddered. “Let me enjoy these years of ignorant bliss, all right?”

“All right,” Abe agreed slowly, the look in his eyes telling Harper he was seriously questioning the other captain’s sanity at that very moment. “Hey, speaking of your kids - Mads ran into the kitchen to bug her dad a few minutes ago, and now she’s asking for you. She’s got it narrowed down to some sort of terrier, by the way.”

“Oh, great.” Maya shook her head, turning on her heel to head for her boyfriend and his daughter. “There is definitely going to be a dog in my house by the end of the week, isn’t there?”

“The shelters are having some sort of special,” Abe offered helpfully, biting back a smirk at the look the woman shot his way. “Hey, I’m just saying.”

Maya shook her head. “Okay, I’m going to go defuse that situation before I’m also sharing my place with a horse and a few dozen kittens. You’re not going to drive Mama crazy like your sister, are you?” she said hopefully, rubbing a hand up and down her stomach as she walked away.

“That kid’s definitely going to drive her just as insane,” Abe murmured to Harper, pressing a kiss against the side of her head when she simply huffed a laugh in response. “Casserole’s in the oven; timer’s set.”

“Thank you,” she murmured gratefully.

“Yeah, of course. Anything else?” 

“I’m not Harper, but can you peel the potatoes?” Nona requested. “I swear our peeler has got something against me. When Trey uses it, it works fine, but when I do – bloody hands, every time.”

“I think I can do that,” Abe agreed easily. “Though I can’t guarantee we won’t also have a bloody peeler by the time I’m done.”

“Yeah, his mom told me he once chopped off the tip of his finger while they were living in Germany,” Harper told their friend. “Said _that_ was a fun one to try to explain over the phone in a foreign language.”

“Hey, I’ve not done it since,” Abe defended himself halfheartedly.

“No, you just broke your finger so badly while you were on vacation in Italy that the doctors seriously thought they might have to amputate it,” Harper agreed sarcastically. “Totally not the same thing at all.”

“My God, how is your mother still sane?” Nona muttered in horror, completely serious.

“Because those weren’t even the craziest injuries,” Abe replied reluctantly. “And you know, as much as I love you, I’m really starting to regret introducing you to my mother and sister,” he added, glancing down at Harper as he spoke.

“Because they like me more than you?” Harper questioned innocently.

“Hey, now, it’s Thanksgiving.” Abe hesitated for a moment before continuing. “And yes, because they like you more than me.” He pushed up from the sofa, leaning down to press a final kiss to the top of her head. “If you hear screaming, call 911,” he called over his shoulder, returning to the kitchen.

“I will, sweetheart,” Harper promised, smiling fondly as she watched him leave.

Nona glanced back and forth between the two of them with a soft smile. “This is shaping up to be my favorite Thanksgiving yet in this town,” she informed Harper after several moments passed in silence.

“Yeah,” Harper murmured, still staring after Abe. “Mine, too.”

-o-

“Well,” Abe murmured, opening the door to his apartment and allowing her to enter first, “I don’t think I’m going to need to eat again for at least the next three weeks or so.”

Harper nodded in agreement, collapsing onto the sofa and curling immediately into his side once he’d claimed the seat next to her. “Why is it that this is the one day a year when eating half a dozen slices of pie seems like the greatest idea the species has ever come up with?”

“No idea.” Abe pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “My mom texted while we were in the elevator.”

“Oh, yeah?” Harper glanced up at him. “What’d she say?”

“Nothing much, just that she’s looking forward to seeing us on Sunday. Candace, too, though considering the stories she’s already shared from our childhood, I don’t know how I feel about her excitement.”

“Hey, if you think it’s bad with just one sibling, imagine how it’s going to be when your brother’s around more often.” Harper laughed openly at the look of true terror that came over her boyfriend’s face. “You’re going to be okay, sweetheart. I’m not planning on blackmailing you at any point in the near future.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” he returned drily. “It’s extremely unfair that you have no siblings to tell me about all the things you did as a child, you know.”

“What’re you talking about? I was a perfectly poised little girl. You know how many puffy white dresses they made me wear? How many sons of their rich friends stepped on my toes? It took a whole hell of a lot of poise to emerge from all of that without a permanent criminal record.”

“Mm. Had you prepped for warzones young, did they?” he murmured teasingly.

“That they did. You think I’d be able to convince them the whole Corps thing is all their fault?”

“Probably not.”

“Yeah,” she sighed, “I didn’t think so.”

“You could always try it out,” Abe suggested. “Give them something to be angry about other than you not being home for the holidays.”

“Worth a shot, I suppose.” She reached blindly for the remote on the table next to them, smiling gratefully when Abe reached over her to grab it and hand it over himself. “Thanks.”

“Sure. So, am I in for another night of Hallmark movies?” he questioned resignedly.

“It’s nice watching things you can depend on,” she argued playfully. “They’ll meet, dance around each other, find out they’re going to be apart soon, decide to call things off then and there, and then turn down their jobs in London or Paris or wherever to stay behind and have a happily ever after. It’s actually pretty close to being like clockwork, if you really think about it.”

“Logical argument,” he admitted, allowing her to flip the television to the aforementioned channel. He shook his head within the first minute of watching. “Who gets mad at the person who willingly helps their kids bake Christmas cookies? He _has_ made Christmas cookies with his own kids before, hasn’t he?”

“Well, maybe they don’t pour entire bags of flour onto the floor like you and your siblings did.” She smirked when he glanced down at her incredulously. “Yup, your mom shared that one with me too.”

“Really dreading the second round of Thanksgiving,” Abe muttered once more.

“No, you’re not,” Harper contradicted lightly.

“No,” he agreed, albeit slightly reluctantly. “I’m not. This is the best Thanksgiving I can remember, you know,” he added, his voice softening as he spoke.

“Yeah,” she replied just as gently. “This…” She snuggled closer to him, her eyes drifting shut as the movie continued on in the background. “is all I need.”

“Yeah,” he murmured, his arm tightening around her shoulders. “Me too.”

The movie continued on for another hour, but they were out before the first commercial break rolled around. Neither of them complained about it in the slightest.

**Author's Note:**

> The goal was to have this finished by Thursday, but then I spent the entire day with my family, much longer than I'd thought I would, and so, when I got home at around midnight, I wasn't really in a mood to pump out a couple thousand words. Then the plan became finishing it yesterday, which was also thwarted by MORE family arriving from out of town later than we had thought they would and my schedule being thrown off again. So, while I had tons of fun with my family, this is insanely late as a result. I'm sorry for that. 
> 
> Some notes - this is set in the future, as stated in the summary. Basically, Harper and Abe got together on December 26, after her return from California, and this is the following year. So, the Ferrys' twins have arrived, and also Maya and Rhys have been together quite a bit longer than in other parts of the series. I'll fill in the blanks soon, I promise - hopefully prior to writing a Christmas story for this series - but the reason for the vagueness is because I'm planning on going more in-depth with those particular storylines. 
> 
> I'm sorry for the long author's note; please ignore my rambling. I hope you enjoyed the story regardless, and have a Merry Christmas (because I'm too late to say Happy Thanksgiving, though I hope you had one of those, too)! 
> 
> P.S. I promise I'll try not to drop off the face of the earth until Christmas, but, you know, in case I do, season's greetings and all that jazz.


End file.
